Trending
We have been learning about Joe Louwagie's Vietnam service. He grew up on the family farm south of Green Valley and married Jo Schmitz, in 1968 after graduating college. Facing a draft call, Joe enlisted in the Army for Officer Candidate School (OCS) training, but dropped OCS when a back injury precluded his becoming an officer. The Army deployed him to Vietnam in June 1969. He served as an infantryman before returning in May 1970.
Joe recalled his flight home from Vietnam.
"I left from Tan Son Nhut, the same place I arrived. When the plane got off the ground everybody was yelling. I think it was the shortest plane ride I ever had. (Joe chuckled) I think we stopped in Honolulu then to San Francisco. I out-processed out of Oakland."
Joe's wife, Jo, and their young son, Joseph, met him at the Minneapolis airport. He found his return to Minnesota and home surreal. But he was quite clear on another point.
"It was nice to have a wife and a son to come back to. I've always appreciated her standing by me and I don't think you realize how important your spouse is until you are forced to be separated."
Joe relocated his little family to Grand Forks where the University of North Dakota Law School had held the seat they offered Joe before he enlisted. He reflected on how his Vietnam service helped him master law school challenges.
"I learned that no matter how much you knocked me down, I'm going to get back up. That's why I say Vietnam was the best thing in the world, as far as my making it through law school, because I learned that no matter where I was, I could still put out more."
Joe did well in Law School and clerked for the North Dakota Supreme Court before accepting a long-time offer from Bob Runchey to work in his Marshall law firm.
"I was a litigation attorney. I probably tried more cases in southwest Minnesota than any area attorney for many years. Lawyers soon knew that I was prepared when I went to court. If you are prepared, you're going to win. I had the nickname, "Bulldog." I loved trial work. I had 27½ years of the best occupation you could have."
But eventually Joe's Vietnam service haunted his career. He explained that troops patrolling in Vietnam routinely foraged for water because they couldn't carry enough to last more than a day or two.
"You consume a lot more water when you're hot and sweating. We would stop at bomb craters or ravines to fill up with water and they gave us purification tablets to kill the bacteria in the water. The problem is they never bothered to tell us that Agent Orange had been sprayed over the area and that there was Agent Orange in the water.
Years later that exposure began affecting him.
"I developed a condition known as Vasomotor Rhinitis where I react to odors, fumes, temperature change, and wind. The military found me 100% disabled. I cannot go into homes with any odors; cannot be with groups; and cannot go to church or weddings. By 2001, I could no longer handle litigation, as I was constantly losing my voice and other side effects. That's when I decided that I had to retire."
Joe reflected on the dangers he experienced in Vietnam.
"The first day you went in the field, you're scared as hell. I think after that you realized you had to do your job because if you weren't, you'd jeopardize everybody with you. Any time you are in contact, you have anxiety, but I don't know that you equate it with fear."
Joe described how the dangers were real, but the acute experience of combat sometimes led to unexplained situations.
"I remember we were going across a farm when we started getting rifle fire. I'm laying as flat as I can in that damn, coffee-colored ground. Rounds went over my head for quite a while, but you don't move. The adrenaline (from combat) affects you. When I came home I had a piece wood like that (his fingers about two inches apart) stuck in my knee. I was swimming six months after I was home and it came out. I have no idea how I got it. Another time I had a big strip of plastic shot off my rifle. I have no idea how it happened."
He tried to prepare himself and Jo for what he expected to happen during his year-long tour of duty.
"You knew that your unit was going to get hit. You just hoped and prayed it would not be serious. I told my wife I probably would come back without an arm or a leg. (Joe's voice tightened with emotion) I had a lot of close calls and I can't explain it other than that the Lord was taking care of me."
Joe summed up his thoughts about his life with Jo.
"My wife and I enjoy life and I believe that I am one of the luckiest people in the world. I have learned to accept my limitations, but I work out; golf; and enjoy reading books, cooking, and spending time with family and friends. Life is great if one takes the time to appreciate all the good things we have in life and forget the bad."
Thank you for your Vietnam service, Joe. Welcome home!
Please visit our new exhibit, The Vietnam War and Lyon County, at the Lyon County Museum to learn more about the experiences of our area Vietnam veterans.